Home Is Wherever I’m With You

I won’t recap my entire day.5 travel adventure in-depth, but suffice it to say that I still hate Air France, my luggage made it in one piece, and I was one very happy girl to land in Sofia and walk out to my waiting husband.

The 4-hour drive from Sofia to Smolyan started out pretty well. But once it got dark (around 5 pm) I started to fade fast. The roads become treacherous after Asenovgrad, turning from fairly normal and well maintained, to narrow, icy, and pothole ridden death traps. There is nothing that gets my heart racing faster than having to pass on these tiny roads (good thing Vince is driving, I’d be too scared to even try). I was beyond exhausted and simply couldn’t keep my eyes open. I would wake up every so often to make sure Vince wasn’t falling asleep, but other than that I was out for the last 100km of our journey home.

We arrived in Smolyan around 8pm. The night is a bit of a sleep-deprived blur, but I do remember being greeted by my in-laws with hugs and kisses, filling up on a bowl of bean soup (my fav), and digging my pjs out of my suitcase so I could fall into bed. I don’t think I have ever slept so deeply.

Unfortunately, going to bed so early has its disadvantages; I woke up at 6am this morning and couldn’t go back to sleep. Oh well, it’s better than the hellacious jet lag I suffered last time I was here!

The rest of our day was spent eating (I feel like all my mother-in-law does is feed me! I am never going to lose any weight here!), unpacking my suitcases (yes, I brought a ridiculous amount of unnecessary stuff, as usual), and shopping for food for tomorrow night.

We drove around town for a bit after shopping so that I could take some photos. Smolyan has quite a bit more snow that it did last time I was here, which was exactly 3 years ago.

In addition to the amazing food they’ve been providing, my in-laws also gave me some amazing gifts tonight: 18k gold necklace and earrings and 2 hand-knit sweaters that my MIL made herself. I am such a lucky girl!

Not going to lie though… I did cry today. Between how tired I still am and falling up some icy steps, I just couldn’t help myself and let the tears flows. They stopped soon enough, however, and I carried on. This will not be my first meltdown in BG. I am sure there are many more to come, but that’s just how I roll!

Like the song says, home to me is wherever I am with the man I love. We are in this together, Vince and I, and I can deal with a few cuts and bruises along the way.

Now for your enjoyment, some photos from my first day back in Bulgaria:

Sunrise over Smolyan

Breakfast: Patatnik and tea. YUM!

Waiting for Vince to pull the car out of the garage, I spotted these two roadies.

I am happy too! I was really worried about my bags, they were stuffed so full! And yep, back in 3 months, then it’s off to Alaska then back to Bulgaria. I have a lot of traveling in my future! Miss you already.

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Hello there!

I'm Whitney...an American gal married to a Bulgarian gent living an adventurous life outside of little Trapper Creek, Alaska. Here on GMB I write about the good, the bad, and the funny that come along with a life of continued wanderlust. I'm addicted to travel, photography, crafting, eating good food, and spending time with my adorable hubs. All of these topics (and more!) are frequently featured, so...pull up a chair and stay awhile! I would love to get to know you!

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